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UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


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A  BRIEF  HISTORY  OF 


MACON  COUNTY^ 


NORTH  CAROLINA, 


BY  DR.  C.  D.   SMITH. 


FRANKLIN,  N.  C. 

Franklin  Prkss  Print. 

1891. 


A  BRIEF  HISTORY  OF 


MACON  COUNTY, 


NORTH  (AROLLNA, 


BY  DK.  C.  D.   SMITH. 


FRANKLIN,  N.  C 

Fbanklix  PsEsa  PuiIfT. 

.1891. 


■»T» 


^ 


Census  of  Macon  (bounty. 


CiiNfcUb  Bulletin  INu.  122,   give.-*   tbe  Popuiatioii  oi  JStyrib  Caiolida  bv 

Minor  Civil  Divisions.     We  extract   from    it   the  population   of  Macon 
County  as  follows: 

Tow>fSHip.s.                                                                       JS90.  1880. 

*Burt)ingtown, 682  597 

Cartoogechaye 819  584 

CoH-ee, 1,263  1,066 

EUijay, 812  689 

'Franklin,  including  town, 2,249  1,840 

'  Iligblands,  including  town, 788  436 

l^Millshoal, 699  671 

Nantahala,   1,124  855 

Smith's  Bridge, 1,123  890 

Sugar  Fork, 543  436 

Franklin   town, 28]  207 

Highlands  town, 233  82 

Macon  County, 10,102  8,064 


o 


A  BRIEF  HISTORY  OF  MA(  ON  (  OUNTY,  N.  0. 


I'Airr  1. 


1  propose  to  write  a  brief    history 
of  Macon  County   so   far   as  I    have  j 
been  able  to  gather  the  facts.     There 
has  heretofoi'e  been,  and    still    exists 
an  unaccountable  iudiMerence  in  par- 
ticular   communities    in    regard    to 
their  local  history — the  preservation 
of  all  the  notable  events — the  histor- 
ic facts  showing  their  rise  and    prog- 
ress.    This  is  especially  true  of    this 
great  plateau  of  country    lying   west 
of  the  Blue  Ridge  in  North  Carolina. 
This  neglect  on  the  part  of  the  early 
settlers  to  keep  a  true  historic  record 
of  the    early    settlement,    progress,  I 
development  and    succeeding  chan- 
ges of  population  and  civilization,  is  j 
a  culpable  injustice  to  the   posterity  j 
of  the  strong,  resolute  men  who,    on  | 
the  retirement  of  the    savages,    took  i 
possession  of  the   country    and    sub-  j 
jected  its  lands  to  the  arts  of  agricul- 
ture  and    civilization.     It    is    both 
interesting  and  instructive  to    know 
something  of  the  men  who  first  built 
habitations  in  the  wild  forests  of  Ala- 
con  County  and  introduced  Christian 
civilization  and  customs  wheie    only 
savage  life  and  customs  hu'l  prevail- 
ed from  away  back  beyond    the    his- 
toric   era.     These    sturdy    pioneers 


Hocked  into  this  valley  in  1820  only 
seventy  years  ago,  and  yet  I  havi- 
found  it  very  difficult  to  get  together 
the  leading  facts  of  history  for  so 
short  a  period.  There  ought  to  bo 
in  some  county  department  a  lOiri- 
plete  and  official  report  of  the  com 
missioners  having  the  matter  in  hiuid 
of  the  survey  of  the  lands  of  the 
county  then  ordered,  the  location 
and  survey  of  the  county  site  (the 
town  of  Franklin),  and  a  report  oi 
the  surveyor-in-chief  giving  a  com- 
plete dingratn  of  the  lands  surveyed. 
The  coramissionei's  reported  to  the 
State  authorities  and  there  are  somi- 
files  in  the  Secretary's  office,  Xo 
such  record  can  be  found  in  the 
Register's  office  of  Macon  County. 
Such  record  would,  iiowever,  make 
an  instructive  and  attractive-  feature 
in  our  county  records  and  would  in- 
terest the  student  of  history  and  the 
lovers  of  antiquarian  lore.  A  proud 
spirited  Board  of  Commissioners 
ought  to  take  steps  to  supply  this 
deficiency  in  our  county  records. 

At'tfr  what  seemed  at  one  tinte, 
would  prore  to  be  a  fruitless  search, 
I  found  the  record  of  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  county,  which    took  place 


nine  years  after  thi'  survey  <>t  the 
lands  and  the  location  of  the  site  for 
tlie  town  of  Franklin.  All  hack  of 
Uiat  is  blank  so  far  as  any  official 
reeonl  is  concerned.  And  for  other 
valuable  iiifonnation  which  I  now 
proceed  to  give  I  iiave  hud  lo  ?"ely 
mainly  upon  the  8tatemenis  of  the 
few  renininincj  in<1ividuals  who  were 
]iarticipants  in  the  work  of  survey 
and  location  referred  to. 

It  has  been  a  tnooleil  question  a.*' 
to  whether  Macon  County  ever  be- 
longed to  the  territory  of  Jiuncombe 
County.  The  facts  show  that  it  did 
not,  the  Buncombe  line  never  having 
extended  further  west  than  the 
Meigs  an<l  Freeman  line.  The  ter- 
ritory now  eniV)raced  in  Macon  and 
a  portiofi  each  ot  the  counties  of 
Jackson  and  Swain,  was  acquired  by 
treaty  from  the  Cherokee  Indians  in 
1817 — 19.  During  the  summer  and 
fall  of  1819  a  few  whites  came  a- 
mongsl  the  Indians  with  a  view  io]iur- 
chasiug  when  the  lands  should  come 
into  market.  Durmg  that  fall  many 
of  the  Indians  moved  west  of  the 
Nantahala  chain  of  mountains,  but 
the  entire  tribe  did  not  leave  the 
Tennessee  Valley  until  the  fall  of 
1820.  In  the  spring  <»f  1820  the 
State  Commissioners,  Jesse  Franklin 
and  James  Meabin  in  accord  a  n»^e 
with  the  provisions  of  an  act  of  the 
(leneral  Assembly,  came  to  the  Ten- 
nessee Valley,  now  tln^  chief  part  of 
Macon  County  and  organized,  for  the 
survey  of  lands,  a  corps  of  .surveyors 
of  vvboni  Caj^t.    Koberl    Love,  a    son 


oi  (nil.    riioma>    Lo\e,    wh<»   setii<  . 
tlifc  place  at  the   bridge  where   Caj 
T.   M.    Angel     recently     lived,    w 
chief.     Kobert    Love   had     been    smi 
honored  and    brave    Captain    in    tl." 
war  of  1H12,  was  much   respected  ou 
account  of  his    patriotic    devotion  '• 
American    liberty,   and     wjis   cons  - 
qiK'iitly    a    man    of    large    influenc  • 

The  work  of  survey    wont    rapid  • 
f.oward,  as  there    were    five    or   six 
distinct  companies  in  the  fiehL     Tl 
commissioners  tirst  determined   upc.- 
the  Watauga  Plains  where    the   laic 
Mr.  Watson  lived  for  the  county  si^ 
for  a  court  house  and    four    bundn-  > 
acres  (the   amount   appropriated    I  \- 
the  State  for  that  purpose)  was  lo<  ■ 
ted  and  surveyed.     There  was,  bov 
ever,  a  good  deal  of  murmuring  at  > 
jirotcst  among   the    surveyors,   esp*. 
cially  by  Capt.  Love,  the  chief,    wb<i 
favored  the  present  site    or   the    flat 
ri<Ige  whery  Mrs.  IL    T.    Sloan    new 
resides.    To  harmonize  with  their  em- 
ployes and  to  give  more  genenal    s;- 
isfaction  the  Conjmissioners,  who  h:  ■ 
no  j>ersonal  interest   in    the   raatt*  v 
proposed  to  call  together   the   entii' 
corps  of  surveyors  and  leave  it    to    ri 
majority  vote  of  them. 

This    |)roposition    was    agre(-; 
and     the    respective    companies 
surveyors  were  ordered   to  as.semb:  . 
On  counting  the     vote    the   prese^  t 
site  of    Franklin     had    a    majori:  .-, 
This    result     was    mainly     broug   ' 
about  through  the  influence  of  Caf 
Love,  the  chief    of    the    corps, 
compliance     with       their     propv;- 


terms  a  sin-vey  was  ordered    by   tJu^ 
commissioinM-s,    the    four    hundred 
acres  were  located  and  a   portion   of 
it  laid    off   into   lots    including    the 
court   house    square.     I    obtained  a 
few  years   ago   the   foregoing  facts 
from  the  late  Rev.   John   McDowell 
who  was  a  member  of   Capt.   Love\s 
corps  and  a  participant  in    the   elec- 
tion.    I  have  been  tbu?  particular  in 
giving  them  in  order    t«>   settle   any 
dispute  thnt  might  hereafter  arise  as 
to  the  location  of  the  town  of  Frank- 
lin.    The  work  of  survey  as  mapped  \ 
oat  by    the    Commissioners    hftving  I 
been  finished,  a  general    auction  sale  | 
of  the  lands   to    the    highest   bidder  i 
took  place  at  Wayiusville    in    Si'j>t.  ; 

1S20.  '  : 

The   settlement     of   the    (.own    of  ! 
Franklin  commenced    at  once.     The  ! 
first   house   built   in     Franklin    was  ; 
built  by  Joshua   Roberts   on  the   lot  ' 
now  occupied  by  Mr.   Jackson  John- 
ston. It  was  a  small  round  log  cabin.  | 
But  the  first   house   jjroper  was   one  j 
built  of  hewn  logs,   by  Irad  S.  High-  i 
tower  on    the  lot   where   Mr.  N.   G.  | 
Allman's  hotel   stands.     It  now  con-  | 
stitutes  a  part  of  that  building.  That  ! 
first  house  passed    into  the   hands  of 
the  late  Capt.  N.  S.   Jarrett,   thence 
to  Gideon  F.  Morris,    and  from    him 
to  John  R,  Allraan    and  then    to  the  ! 
present  owner,  N .  G.  Allman.     There 
v»  ere  sevei  al  log   cabins  built    about 
that  time,  but   the  order  in    which  it 
was  done  and   the  claims  to   priority 
I  have  been  unable  to  ascertain. 
Lindsey  Fortune  built  a   cabin    on 


j  the  lot  where  the  Franklin  Hoase,  or 

Jarrett  Hotel   now   stands.     Samitel 

j  Robinson  built  on  the  lot  now   occu- 

j  pied  by  Mrs.   Robinson,     Silas   Mc- 

j  Dowell  first  built  on   the   lot  where 

j  stands  the  residence  of  T>.  C.   Cuu- 

I  niiigham.     Dillard    Love    built    the 

i  first  bouse  on  Mr.  Trotter's   lot.     N. 

j  S.  Jarrett  built  on  the  lot  owned  and 

I  occupied  by  Sam  L.    Rogers.     John 

!  F.  DoV)son  first  improved  the  corner 

lot   now  owned    by   C     C     Smith. 

James  K.  Gray  built  the  second  house 

made  of  hewn  logs  on  the  lot  owned 

by  Mr...  Dr.  A.  W.   Bell.    Jesse   R. 

Siler,  one  of  tbe  first  sellers  built  the 

house  at  the  foot    of   th<'   town   hill 

where  Mr.  Geo.  A.Jones  now  resides. 

He  also  built    the    second    house   on 

the  Gov.  liobinson  lot  and  the  brick 

store  and  dwelling  owned  at  present, 

by  Capt.  A.  P.  Munday.     James  W. 

Guinn    or  Mr.   Whitaker   built   the 

house  owned  and    occupied    by    M 

Jackson  Johnston. 

I  am  indebted  for  much  ^f  this 
information  about  the  early  settle- 
ment of  Franklin  to  the  late  James 
K.  Gray  ai.d  Silas  McDowell. 
There  is  one  other  fact  worthy  of 
notice.  John  R.  i  '.^  an  opened  the 
first  hotel  in  Fran!  .  Shortly  af- 
ter tliis  Jesse  R.  Siier  opened  his 
hou.se  at  the  "foot  of  the  hill"  and 
these  two  houses  furni.shed  the  hotel 
acc.ommod!»tions  here  for  many  years. 
These  are  the  facts  of  history  about 
Franklin  so  far  as  they  go.  Though 
meagre  and  unsatisfactory,  they  may 
be  interesting  to  future   generations. 


<»<N»^*^»»^MM^ 


. 


I'Airr  II 


AftPr  the  land  sale  in  Sf-ptenjber, 
IJ^'20,  at  which  a  large  part  of  the 
fiurveyed  land  was  disposed  of  to 
the  highest  bidders,  the  Tennpssci- 
Valley  was  settled  quite  rapidly,  but 
it  was  not  until  the  spring  of  1829 
that  a  county  g«^vorn)ncnt  was  or- 
ganized. During  this  interim  all  the 
If'gal  bosinoss  of  the  entire  territory 
west  from  the  Turkaseige  river  to 
the  Tusquittee  and  Valley  River 
chain  of  inonn tains  was  transacted 
by  the  county  anthorities  of  Hay- 
wood county  and  in  the  Superior 
court  for  said  county.  I  remember 
distinctly  the  case  of  a  man  living 
within  the  territory  of  the  present 
Smith's  Bridge  townshi;*  who  was 
iried  and  convicted  in  the  Superior 
court  for  Haywood  county  for  hog 
stealing,  and  for  tin's  crime  received 
Iv.enty-ninc  lashes  at  the  public 
whipping-post  in  the  town  of  Waynes- 
ville.  This  is  the  only  case  of  the 
kind  that  ever  happened  in  the  terri- 
tory of  Macon  county.  During  this 
interim  the  late  Col.  Joab  L.  Moore, 
who  resided  ne  r  Franklin,  held  for 
four  years  the  position  of  Deputy 
SherifY  under  Col.  James  McKee, 
who  was  at  that  time  Sheriff  of  Hay- 
wood county.  Col.  Moore  did  all 
the  business  pertaining  to  that  oHice 
in  the  new  territory,  and  was  regard- 
ed as  a  very  efficient  and  faithful 
ofHcer.  This  transition  covering  the 
formative  period  of  our  first  popula- 


tion finally  crysiulized   into  tJ 
ments  f(>r  self   county   govpniiiii"i 
Hence,  at  the  session  of   the  Cencr* 
Assembly    for    1828-29   an    act   wa 
pa.ssed  fn  create  a    :icw    county    an^ 
•  he  name  of  Macon  was   givi'u  it   i 
honor  of  N;iflianiel  Macon,  wiio   wa 
a  pure  statesman  and  a  p»  rl<<-t  ^d-.-c- 
men  of    an  old    time    Anieri< 
triot  and  gentleman.     The  I«w   1 1'.; 
ting  the  county  ajipoinled  thirty-thre 
leading  citizens  to  be   (pnililied   anu 
to  serve  a-s  the  first  Hoanl  of  Magi 
trates.      I    here   quote    th»'   niinut*-- 
showing    the    organizati 
county : 
'■'■^Il.nales   of   a    Court  for   Maco 

County,  Held  for  Said  County  o  . 

the  ith  Monday  in    March,    182'. 

Agreeable  to  an  Act  of  the  Genen 

Assembly  Made  and  Provided  fc 

Said  County. 

Present  and  organizing  said  coui. 
ty,    from    the    county  of   Haywood 
Wm.  Deaver,  Esqr.,    who  afipoinie 
Joshua    Roberts   to   administer   tV 
oath  to  the  following  Justices  of  \\  ■ 
Peace  for  said  county,  to-wit :  Aaro 
Pinson,  Saul  Smith,  Jesse    R.    Sile 
John     Howard,    Jaeob    Siler,   Joh. 
Moore,   John    Cook,    Enoa    Shield 
Jonathan  Phillips,  Bynum    W.  BhI  . 
Benjamin  S.  Brittain,  Josei>h  Welcl 
Michael  Wikle,  Thomas  Rogers,  Wn 
F,  McKee,  Andrew  Cathey,  Ceorg 
Dickey,  Edward  L.  Poindexter,  Ira 
S.  Hightower,  James  Buchanan,  Wn.. 


Tarin-ni,  Wni.  II.  l^rvsoii,  Matthew  j  in  the  administration  of  law  cominj^ 
PrUlersoii,  Bar.ik  Norton,  Wni.  Wit- 1  wilhin  tlieiv  jurisdiction,  thoy  suffer 
son,  T1>0!*.  Love,  Jr.,  Mark  Coleman,  j  nothing  in  comparison  with  the  very 
Hugh  Gihhs,  i\Haph  Enloe,  Kobert  j  best  County  Boards  of  Magistrates 
nnireins,  Jo'mi  Wild,  Henry  Dry- |  within  the  State  Pt  the  present  writ- 
man  and  Joffcrs  ;i  Hryson,  who,  aftei  [  ing.  For  public  spirit,  and  patriotic 
tnkii^g  s.iid  oath  ajireeable  to  law,  i  lab(*r  in  the  direction  of  county  de- 
procccded  to  appoint  :\  clerk  for  said  |  veiopment  and  in  building  and  kecj>- 
countv.  After  balloting  for  said  ap- j  ing  in  repair  public  roads  for  public 
p«nntment,  it  appeared  to  the  satis*- ,  comfort  and  convciuence,  they  liavc 
faction  of  the  court  that  Natlvm  R. '  not  had  their  equal  in  the  county  for 
Hyatt  was  duly  elected  clerk.'  :ie  Last  half   century.     If    we     take 

The  court  having  thus    been    duly    the  Scriptural  axiom  .as  true  that  the 
organized,  consisting;  of   thirty-three  ■■  "tree  is  known  by  its  fniii",  then  rlie 
magiijitrates,  they  pro<('eded,  by   bal- 1  deterioration    of    our    public    roads 
lot,  to  e!»'ct  al!  the  county    officers —  |  does  not  place  the  present  population 
the  election  continuing   from   day  to    in  an  enviable  light  when    compared 
'l:.s.     .John   ]>ob!Jon,    father   *)f   our  !  with  the  population  of  Mac<>n  Ooun- 
lountyman,    Capi.    J.   W.    Dobyon, ;  ty  fifty  years  ago.     This  comparison 
was  elected    first   County  Register, ;  stands  out  with    special    )irominetice 
Bynum  W.  Beli  first    Shei-iff,  Mont- !  when  we  consider  ihe  present   unac- 
ravillc  Pa.tton  first  County  Solicitor,   countable  disinclination  of  our  popu- 
Jacob  Siler  first    County    Surveyor,  |  lation  to  render  even    a   day's    laJjf.r 
Michael  Wikle  first  County  Trustee,    on  repairs  to  say  nothing  of  the  more 
Nathan  Smith  first   Coroner,  Robert  needed  ini[iro\  enieiits  on  our    public 
Huggins   fir-^t   County   Ranger   and  '  roads.     T'l  tell  ,1  plain  historic  truth 
James  K.  Gray,  lirst  Standard  Keep- 1  in  plain  Luigaage,  our  fat.her^,    from 
er.     James  I\)teeL  was  the  first  Con- '  patriotic  motives  and  with  a  sense  of 
stable  appointed  by  the    new    court,  i  public  and  pei-sonal  comfort  and  con- 
Oft  h;:t  first  Board  of   Magistrates  I  i  venience,  and  luompied    by    county 
knew  nearly   .all    personally.     Some- 1  pride,  built   our  county    roads,    and 
thing    over    sixty-two     years     have   the  present  generation  is  too  irifliug 
passed  away  since  tiiat  first  l^oard  of  j  to  keep  them  up.     As  an  illustration    ' 
Magiift.rates    was    organized    into   a ;  of  the  spirit  of   the   men    who   first 
court.     Of  the  whole   number   there  ;  settled  M.acon  County,  it  was  .agreed 
is  but  one  now  living,  the    venerable    that  the  county  sh')uld  build  a    road 
William  H.  Bryson,  who    resides   in '  leading   from    Franklin    down    the 
Jackson  county.     Taken   as  a  body,  j  Tennessee  River  to  the  mouth  of  the 
for  general  intelligence,   integrity  of  j  Tuckaseige  River  to  connect    with  a 
character  and  fortitude    and   fidelity  :  turn-pike  for    which    Joseph    Weich 


hud  11  charter  to  ihe  TeniH'Ssef  State  I  tied  iiitu  three  8ft'lii)n8  with  Jetbe 
line.  Accordingly  the  court  appoin-!R.  Siler,  Juseph  Weloh  and  James 
ted  a  Jury  to  lay  off  and  mark  the  Whitaker  as  the  overseers  of  the  re- 
way  for  said  road  ooramencing  at  the  I  spective  sections  with  sptcis!    Iiandu 


junction  of  the  Tennessee  and  Tuck- 
aseige  rivers  and  to  divide  it  into 
lots  at«  near  equal  ap  their  liniiled 
means  would  enable  them  lo  do. 
The  jury,  laid  and  marked  off  seven 
lots,  Xo,  1  commencing  at  thcTucka- 
seige  Ford  and  No.  7  terminating  not 
far  from  the  Shallow  Ford   on    Ten- 


assigned  them.  Lot  No.  7  had  Wm. 
Bryson  as  overseer.  This  lot  fell  to 
Capt.  Wilson's  oompany.  This  lot 
terminated  some  whert'  ahoiil  the 
Shallow  Ford,  the  road  from  Frtuik- 
lin  having  been  somewhat  worke«l 
oat  to  that  point.  The  foregoing 
lots  v\  ere  worked   out  by    respeotive 


nessee  river.     There  was   some    sort  |  companies — the  hands  forming  them- 
of  lottery  in  assigning  this    work   to  j  selves  mto  messes,  taking   wagons  to 
the  respective  captains'  militia  com- ,  haul    their   provisions,    tools,   camp- 
panies.     I  suppose  there   was   draw- 
ing of  straws  or  perhaps  numbers  on 
slips  of  paper.     The  record  reads  on 
the  iippointmeni   of   the    respective 
overseers:     "This  lot  falls   to   Capt. 
Love's  company"  &c.  &c.  to  the  end 
of  the  chapter.     It  seems  that   there 
were  six  militia   companies   at   that 
time  in  the  county.     It  may  be   well 
to  mention  here  the  overseers  of  the 
respective    lots,   and   the    Captain's 
company  assigned  to  each  lot,  as  the 
building  of   this   road    furnishes   an 
int^-resting  and    instructive    chapter 
in   the    history    of   Macon    County. 
Henry  Addington  No.  I,  Capt.  Love's 
company ;  Lot  No.  2,  Robert  Johnson, 
Capt.  Johnson's    company  ;   Lot  No. 
3,   Benjamin  S.  Brittain,  Capt.  Mc- 
Kee's   company;  Lot   No.   4,  Jacob 
Palmer,   Capt.   Smith's   compatiy, — 
now  Smith's  Bridge  Township;   Lot 
No.    f),      Joshua      Amraons,     Capt, 
Gtjorge's  company.     Lot  No.  6  being 
regarded  as  a  very  hard  lot  was  divi- 


fixtures  ike.     The   Smith's     Bridge 
company  had  the   lot    which    lay  be- 
tween the  IS  and  19  mile-post*».     The 
mess  consisting   of  my    brothers  anl 
Kome   neighbors    took    me   along    is 
cook   and   camp-boy.     There  I   saw 
the  men  taking   rock  from    the  river 
with  the  water  breast   deep  t<j  aid  in 
building  wharves.     They     remaitied 
until  the    work    was   finished.     Thi« 
work  was  done  without  compensation 
and  for   the   public  good.     It   illus- 
trates the  sort  of  stuff  of   which  our 
fathers  were  made — the   spirit  of  pa- 
triotism that  prompted  a    noble  race 
of    men    to   sacrifice    and    work    for 
their     country's     good.     This   work 
done   they    returned     home,    feeling 
that   they  had   rendered    a   iCfervice 
ihat  was  to  benefit  their  e.ounty   and 
their  posterity. 

The  overseers  of  the  roads  gener- 
ally, of  that  time,  were  of  the  best 
men  in  the  county.  That  first 
Board  of  Masistratos  did  not  l)elieve 


J 


'.  any  class  distinction  in  their  tle- 
r.'.'id.s  for  public  service.  I  find  in 
(1^  recorJs  of  thnt  first  court  an  or- 
ler  appointing  Joshua  Rol)erl8  the 
.nost  prominent  memVier  of  our  local 
)«r  iho  overseer  of  one  of  our  roads. 
Phis  record  set  me  to  thinking, 
riiere  is  ;\  vvho|«  lot  of  lawyers  in 
Western  (Jaroliiui,  whd  ave  not  the 
leers  of  Joshua  Roberts  for  re»pee- 
iibiiity  and  legal  attainments  who 
might  be  utilized  by  oui-  county  au- 
horities  i  y  malcing  road  overseers 
)f  tueia  and  thereby  causing  them  to 
•ender  some  good,  honest  service  to 
hea-  country.     It   would  at    least  be 


a  liealthy  exercise  ur  .  ,.;,..  ,  ;• 
would  bring  the  rebellious  spirit  -..i 
our  young  American  patriots  against 
road  duty  to  proper  verms.  At  ali 
events  it  might  prevent,  the-  l).)a>tfnl 
young  men  of  the  present  time  troin 
fighting  their  over.seers  when  thev 
den;and  reasonable  and  legal  service 
of  them.  Try  it^  Esquires,  and  let 
us  see  if  there  is  any  blood  of  onr 
noble  fiires  in  che  present  generation 
— any  pride  of  character — any  love 
of  the  gene?'al  brotherhood  wlu'ch 
binds  together  the  people  of  a  <.*ounty 
and  vvithoiit  which  its  good  name 
and  prosperity  canriol  long  continue. 


PART   HI. 


The  Courts  of  Pleas  and    Quarter  ; 
Sessions  of  that   day    as    they    were  j 
ialied,  were  regular  jury  courts,  and 
.  give  the  nameA  of  the   first   venire 
■lUmmoned  to  serve  as  jurors,  for  the 
Tune  term  following : 

1  Wymer  Siler, 

2  Jonathan  Whiteside, 
a  Jacob  Hice, 

4  Wm.  Oochrara, 

5  Iknjamin  Johnston, 
b  Wm.  McLure, 

7  Peter  Led  ford, 

8  Martin  Norton, 

9  John  Lamm, 

10  John  Addington, 

1 1  Matthew  Dnvi.s, 
)2  James  Whitaker, 


13  Henry  Addington, 
14Micheul   Wikle, 

15  Wm.  Welch,  Sr., 

16  Samuel  Smith, 
n  Geo.  T.  Ledford. 

18  Ebenezor  Newiou, 

19  Joseph  Welch, 

20  Luke  Barnard, 

21  George  Dickey, 

22  Zachariah  Cube, 
28  Mark  Coleman, 

24  Lewis  Vandyke, 

25  Thomas  Love,  Sr., 

26  March  -Iddingion, 

27  Jacob  Trammel, 

28  John  Dobson, 
2i>  Andrew  Pat  ton, 
30  George  Black, 


)   Idixuc.  Miinnoy, 

■  •■J.  Joliti  IM.  Angel, 

33  John  Gillespif, 

84  Ju!se[tli  ChamlxTs, 

35  John  Tloward, 

3()  Jhi-oh  Siler. 

This  venire  was  composed  of  typ- 
ical and  rcpivseiiUtive  men  i>f  the 
early  population  of  Macon  County. 
It  would  he  hard  to  find  an  abler 
hody  of  jiinjrs,  even  now,  in  any 
county  in  ihe  State.  It  i."  inu-  they 
were  a  style  of  men  different  from 
the  present  edition.  They  werv.  men 
of  sound  minds,  of  X}]}-  strictest  in- 
tegrity, picifoundly  impressed  with 
the  ohiitrations  of  l.nv  and  ju.stice 
and  for  old  fashioned  courtly  deport- 
ment one  towards  another,  and  for 
manly  bearing  in  the  dischari,'e  of 
their  duties  u.s  conservniors  of  pu'dic 
j>eace  and  justice,  they  have  no  su- 
periors at  the  present  day.  Many 
of  them  came  to  the  years  of  man- 
hood in  and  about  the  close  (»f  the 
lievolutionary  war  which  achieved 
An:erican  independence — at  a  time 
and  under  conditions  that  "tried 
men's  souls''  and  when  "the  survival 
of  the  fittest"  gave  to  us  a  race  of 
men  brave,  true  and  thoroughly 
impregnated  with  a  love  for  those 
rights  and  that  justice  which  cost 
so  greut  a  price  of  blood,  'i'hat  love 
was.  quickened  and  intensified  by 
the  war  ot  1812  when  the  mother 
'ountry,  for  the  second  time,  attemp- 
ted, to  enslave  freemen  and  levy  un- 
just tribute  upon  this  grand  and 
)>roduclivf    country    of   ours-.     Is    it 


any  wonder  that  men  raised  in  such 
times  and  familiar  with  ih*-  heroeM 
wht)  slaked  their  aU  on  the  struggle 
against  opj»rcs-iiou  .ind  injustice 
should  be  cminf'utly  fpjalitifd  to  try 
all  legal  disputes  bfiwcm  their  com- 
peers and  mete  out  justi 
vii»latei*8  t>f  the  code? 

I  have  a  distinct  recoliecti«>n  o5 
many  of  thr  members  of  that  jury. 
They  would  compare  favorably  with 
any  similar  l)ody  of  men,  then  or 
now.  In  stature  they  were  al)Ove 
the  ordinary  juryman  and  were  de- 
cidedly maidy  in  a]>pearance  with  a 
bearing  expressive  of  finnnoss  and 
a  will  to  do  the  ri<rhl.  They  Mere 
verv  affable  gentlemen  ;ifid  well 
read  for  men  of  their  limes.  In  fact, 
they  constituted  a  brotherhood  of  pa- 
triots who  loved  and  labored  for 
their  country's  honor  and  their  coun- 
try's good.  Tiiis  constitutes  the 
highest  type  of  citizenship  for  a 
commonwealth.  Such  obedience  to 
law  and  order — such  devotion  to  the 
public  good — such  fidelity  to  public 
trust  and  such  unity  of  action  and 
purpose  in  behalf  of  the  well-being 
of  the  whole  as  characterized  those 
men  furnish  a  guarantee  of  a  pros- 
perous and  happy  people. 

At  that  first  court  for  Macon  (^oini 
ty  the  court  appointed  the*  following 
named  persons  commissioners  whose 
du'iy  it  shfudd  be  to  draft  plans  and 
specifications  for  a  court  house  and 
jail  for  the  county  of  Macon  and  di- 
recting them  to  advertise  the  letting 
out  the  same  to  the  lowest  bidder  at 


the  no\i  tiTin  (It  the  i-oiirt  June  fol- ,  \\"'  iii-  iiwiiicr  i  'nMiilcil  ot  tLo 
lowinp:,  viz:  ''Jcssv  U.  Sik-r,  Thorn- j  tinios  an»l  |)>Uiii)tio  c.haracit'r  of  the 
;is'  Kiinsi'v,  T.uke  IJarnard,  Mnrk  j  envly"  spttlcrs.  m  rh('  i.i:iniH-r  lin^l 
*  ..mMii,  James  Whitnker,  Aaron  j  i^]iii-it  with  u-liicij  ih('\-  scrwd  thf 
)'in?<oii,  John  Brvson,  Sr.'*  I  find  j  piihlic  interest.  I  tin*!  in  .the  ^-J/in. 
lu  ihv  ''Jf  1)1  ifte.'C'  of  the  June  tertn  j  «<e.s-"  for  Marcli  torni  18*29.  with  a 
',.f  rliH  (oiiit  for  IS'JJ)  that  the  oon- j  court  lioiiso  and  jail  to  l.nil.l,  this 
iract  for  huildins:  the  conrt  house  !  order :  "Ordered  l>y  the  Court,  thit 
was  fuvarded  to  Col.  Dnvi  \  Colen^ui  ;  the  Statt  tax  be  20  i-ents.  ami  fifty 
"at  three  thousand  :ind  eight  hun- j  eents  on  tlio  poll — for  jdihlii  Imild- 
dred    dollars"    with     Cen.     Thomas  j  ins:s  12^  eonls  on    eaeh    i>olL  for    to 

Lf)ve  and  Zaehariah  Cahe  as  securities  I  defray  county    charge.s   5   ..-enfs for 

for  the  faithftd  iierforniance  of  the  i  weij^hts  and  measure'*  on  each  oOO 
oontrnct.  At  the  same  time  the  eon- 1  dollars  value  of  land  equal  to  one 
tr;iet  for  buildini?  the  jail  was  award- ,  poll.''  Th'K  order  is  rather  luiione 
ed  to  Coi.  Benjamin  S.  I>rittain  for  j  in  style,  l)ut  it  hrisjors  to  O'lr  knowl- 
"iwenty  jnne  hundred  and  nyiety  :  edi>;e  the  rate  of  taxation.  The  wide 
five  dollars,"  who  ga\e  u<-'  securities  ;  difference  between  the  raxes  of  1829 
for  the  ])erfonnarce  of  the  contract,  j  and  1891  is  indeed  worth v  of  our  se- 
Jo8eph  Welch,  Jeremiah  R.  Pace '  rious  consideration.  The  present 
and  John  Hall.  The  masons  who !  population  complain  most  bitterlv 
undertook  the  brick  work  of  the  ,  of  the  heavy  burden  of  tttxation  un- 
court  house  were  Samuel  Lyle  'and  der  which  they  drag  out  their  ucnry 
Dr.  T.  T.  Young,  of  VVa.sliiugton  1  lives.  I  believe  that  in  the  main 
county,  Tennessee.  They  were  good  i  they  lay  this  sin  at  the  door  {;f  rin^s- 
houest  workmen  in  their  line.  The  i  men'^awJ  the  extravagance  of  officials, 
brick  they  matiufacture-l  were  of  j  Let  us  see  how  this  is.  Our  fathers 
excellent  quality  and  the  house  they  |  believed  that  they  owed  a  debt  to 
built  would  'have  stood  for  n  half  |  good  government — to  the  fairhful 
ceniury  longer.  But  in  style  and  j  adrfiiniatration  of  law  and  the  con- 
capacity  it  wa.-s  wholly  inadequate  to  gervation  of  public  peace  and  moral- 
the  needs  of  the  present  population  |  ity,  and  they  patriotically  undertook 
and  from  sheer  necL'Ssity  gave;  way  j  to  perform'  the  public  service  with- 
to  t-he  substantial  and  commodious  |  out  compensation.  1  (an  well  re- 
new one  which  now  occupies  the  j  member  the  good  eheor  which  pre- 
site  of  the  old  one.  For  the  new  j  vailed  when  the  people  gathered  tn 
and  much  needed  court  house  the ,  the  quarterly  courts  to  transact  the 
public  arc  mainly  indebted  to  u  few  county  business  and  such  other  buoi- 
public  spirited  and  patriotic  surviving  I  Iness  as  came  within  the  jurisdiction 
sons  of  the  fathers  of  the  county.  of  a  qiarterly  court  jury.     It  seemc"! 


J  I) 


to  bf  ;i  6ort  of  ovaliou  when  they 
could  moot  aud  con^ervji  tlio  pabiic 
interest.  ]iut  the  laSt  third  of  a  cen- 
tury has  develoj)ed  ne«  idea«  and 
juethods  for  tlie  public  service.  In- 
deed it  may  be  said  of  ihiss  genera- 
tion as  Robert  Borns  said  of  the 
Scotch  youth  in  his  day  : 

"That  beardless  liuldies 
^1' "'i'^   rliiiik  they  belf.er  were  inform'd 

Thau  their  auld  daddies." 

Losiiij^  that  patriotic  spirit  which 
prompted  thoir  riohle  fathers  to 
the  performance  of  a  public  ser- 
vice without  a  pecuniary  reward, 
they  commenced  to  murmur  about 
the  hardships  of  the  public  ser- 
vice without  a/7er  diem  compensation. 
Nor  did  they  ceatii^  this  howl  for  a 
paltry  sum  until  they  secured  the 
coveted  piize.  Then  of  course  came 
taxation  in  order  to  raise  the  funds 
to  meet  the  demand.  It  presents,  in 
fact,  the  odd  spectacle  of  a  people 
tHxing  thenoselves  that  they  might 
get  it  back  in  a  draft  upon  the  coun- 
ty treasury.  It  is  the  necessity  of 
this  self  imposed  new  order  of  things 
that  makes  the  difference  between 
the  taxes  of  the  prese/)t  and  sixty 
two  years  ago.  It  has  created  and 
fostered  a  mercenary  spirit  in  the 
conduct  of  all  public  affairs,  tlian 
whicii  there  is  no  i^reater  bane  to  all 
civil  and  political  purity.  This  mer-j 
cepaVy  spirit  is  a  poison  that  works  j 
imperoepiibly  but  none  the  less  sure- 1 
\  ly.  It  h  :s  coHt  kii'.gs  their  crowns: 
.;  and  rep'iblics  their  liberty  and  per-  i 
1  liPtnitv.     ft.  is  especially  insidio\is  in 


public  affairs,  and  there  can  be  little 
doubt  that  it  has  been  a  potent  agent 
in  weakening  public  virtue.  It  has, 
indeed,  been  a  fruitful  source  of  the 
perjury  and  bribery  lh.it  now  disgra- 
ces our  civilization — that  corrupts 
our  public  otficials — that  defeats  th- 
adniinislration  of  justice  and  threat- 
ens the  pormaneucy  of  our  noble  prin- 
ciples of  government.  It  had  its  be- 
ginning in  little  matters  but  has 
grown  to  dangerous  proportions,  an<l 
lh<^  end  is  not  yet.  Perhaps  the  rea- 
der will  <Mnsider  this  an  unpardona- 
ble digression.  While  I  admit  that 
it  is  not  ■narrfitioe  I  claim  that  it  is 
nevertheless  hiatorji  and  as  such  com- 
mends itself  to  the  sober  considera- 
tion of  all. 

l,.ittlo  as  mankind  may  tidnk  ahou'. 
it  one  generation  impresses  itself  up- 
on another.  And  singularly  enough, 
the  further  removed,  as  a  general 
rule,  each  generation  is  from  the 
original  stock  the  feebler  becomes  the 
imiM-cssion  of  the  original  type.  This 
is  the  history  of  nations  and  com- 
monwealths. I  mean  this  to  apply, 
not  to  mere  condili()n««  of  luxury  and 
style  under  which  lie  a  vast  amomit 
of  moral  obliquity,  but  to  those  no- 
bler traits  of  heart  and  brain  which 
constitute  real  worth  of  character 
and  qualify  men  to  beai  up  the  pil- 
lars ot  goOil  government  and  a  sound 
public  morality.  Let  the  candid  rea- 
der compare  the  prevalent  disincli- 
nation of  the  populace  of  to-day  to 
perform  any  public  service  only  from 
mercenary  considerations — the   gen- 


11 


oral  spirit  of  insuhor<lin:iti(»!i  to  law 
and  .■ujt.hority  Nvlieiievor  it  conflicts 
with  their  private  prejudices  and 
personal  whims,  with  the  ready  and 
cheerful  compliance  with  the  public 
demands  for  the  pul>iic  good,  reti- 
dered  l;y  our  fathers  of  sixty  years 
ago,  and  he  must  he  convinced  of  the 
truth  of  this  axiom.  This  chapter  is 
written  not  in  a  spirit  of  vindictive- 
ness  or  the  mere  love   of   complaint, 


but  w  ith  a  view  to  awakening  the  pub- 
lic Diind  to  a  sense  of  a  prevalent  evil, 
and  with  a  hope  thereby  to  induce  a 
return  to  healthier  methods  and  a 
more  loyal  and  patriotic  course  in  the 
eonducL  of  jiublic  affairs.  Should 
this  result  in  stirring  up  a  spirit  of  em- 
ulation of  the  noble  men  who  subdu- 
ed the  wilds  of  Macon  county  to  the 
arts  of  Christian  civilization,  I  will 
havci  gained  the  coveted  reward. 


PART  IV. 


The  manneis  and  customs  of  a 
people  usually  form  a  fair  index  to 
their  leading  traits  of  character.  By 
this  rule  I  propose  to  speak  of  some 
of  the  customs  of  the  people  of  Ma- 
con coutity  from  sixty  to  seventy 
years  ago.  While  the  customs  of  s')- 
ciety  were  not  then  so  airish  as  now 
there  was  among  the  more  promi- 
nent families  a  quiet  unobtrusive  na- 
tive dignity  and  sense  of  propriety 
expressive  of  true  man  and  ,  woman- 
hood upon  which  the  arts  of  fashion 
have  not  made  any  improvement. 
The  matter  of  courting  among  young 
people  was  done  in  different  style 
from  the  present,  yet  it  ha<l  the  mer- 
it of  being  honest  and  straight.  And 
although,  incidents  in  some  of  the 
courtships  of  those  days  furnished 
matter  for  amusement  and  laughter, 
the  resulting  marriages  were  usually 
happy  and  prosperous.  A  regular 
dude  could  not  have  got  in  his   work 


of  nonsense  an<l  deception  amongst 
those  people.  There  were  no  dukes 
nor  }>rinces  to  delude  the  giddy  and 
foolish  with  high  sounding  titles 
without  merit,  and  less  capacity  for 
conjugal  happiness.  Merit  then  con- 
sisted in  sound  native  brains,  honest 
industry,  sobriety  and  frugality. 
Whatever  of  goodness  and  usefulness 
there  is  in  the  present  generation 
has  come  from  such  source.  What- 
ever education  teaches  or  results  in 
idleness,  deteriorates  manhood  and 
womanhood.  The  old  classic  adase 
is  as  true  of  woman  as  it  it  is  of  man: 
"An  idle  man's  brain  is  the  devil's 
work-shop."  Nor  does  refinement, 
so  called,  alter  or  modify  this  verdict. 
It  was  the  custom  in  those  early 
days  not  to  rely  for  help  exclusively 
upon  hired  labor.  In  harvesting  small 
grain  crops  the  sickle  was  mostly 
used.  When  a  crop  was  ripe  the 
neighbors  were  notified  and  gathered 


12 


in  to  reap  and  shock  uj*  the  prop. 
The  manner  was  for  a  dozen  or  toure 
men  to  cut  through  the  field,  then 
bang  their  sickles  over  their  stouU 
ders  and  bind  back.  The  boys  gath- 
ered the  sheaves  together  and  the  old 
men  shocked  them  uj*.  The  curii 
crops  were  usually  gathrrod  in  and 
thrown  in  great  heaps  alongside  of 
the  cribs.  The  neighbors  were  invi- 
ted and  whole  days  and  into  the 
nights  were  often  spent  in  husking 
out  a  single  crop.  I  have  seen  as 
many  as  eighty  or  ninety  men  at  a 
time  around  my  father's  corn  heap. 
If  a  house  or  barn  or  stable  was  lo 
be  raised  the  neighbors  were  on  hand 
.'iiid  the  building  was  soon  under 
roof.  Likewise  if  a  man  had  a  heavy 
clearing,  it  was  no  trouble  to  havt; 
an  ample  force  to  handle  and  put  in 
herps  the  heaviest  logs.  It  was  no 
unusual  thing  for  a  man  to  need  one 
or  two  thous;it)d  rails  foi'  fencing. 
All  be  had  to  do  was  to  proclaitn 
that  he  would  have  a  '■'■rail  mauling''' 
ori  a  given  day,  and  bright  and  ear- 
ly the  neighbors  were  on  tiic  ground 
aid  the  rails  were  made  before  sun- 
■  iown.  This  custom  of  mutual  aid, 
•ultivatfcd  a  feeling  of  mutual  depen- 
dence and  brothefhood,  and  re8uit..(l 
in  the  roost  friendly  and  neighborly 
int^rc<mrse.  Indeed,  each  man 
eeinevl  to  be  oh  the  lookout  for  his 
iieighbors'  comfort  and  welfare  as 
well  ae.  his  own.  It  made  a  commu- 
nity of  broad,  liberal  minded  people, 
who  despite  the  t  jngue  of  gossip  and 
an   occasional  fisticuff  in   hot  blood. 


liverl  in  peace  and  good  wii!  .,»».  i,>. 
ward  another.  There  w:is  then  l«h»» 
selfisliDesH  and  cold  formality  than 
now.  Thi.»<  differcnee  is  not  for  the 
want  of  an)  naurr:il  disposition  or 
good  impulses,  but  as  a  result  of  tbc 
forco  of  custom  aiid  habit.  Indeed 
our  social  and  moral  tcn»pers  are 
very  much  tlie  result  of  our  hal»iis 
and  customs.  Any  method  which 
discards  the  habit  of  neighborly  in- 
terchange <>f  good  deeds  and  UKitua! 
helpfulness,  breeds  and  fosters  self- 
ishness. This  leads  legitimately  to 
the  withdraw  d  «)f  each  family  into  a 
sort  of  community  of  its  own,  uncoa 
cerned  for  the  comfort  and  welfare 
of  others.  This,  in  its  turn,  affeet.s 
the  manners  of  a  people.  It  fieczcb 
out  that  warmth  and  good  cheer  8i» 
characteristic  of  our  fathers  of  sev- 
enty years  ago,  and  brings  upon  the 
stage  a  set  of  cavaliers  in  deport- 
ment whose  good  offices  are  ren<lered 
on  the  basis  of  pecuniary  benefit. 
Such  is  the  change  from  the  primi- 
tive customs  here  referred  to,  to  the 
new  method.s,  and  I  leave  the  candid 
reader  to  judge  of  the  result.  I  am 
free  to  admit  that  there  has  been  im- 
provement along  some  lines,  such  for 
instance  an  that  of  education,  the 
building  of  church  houses,  style  of 
dress  etc.,  but  I  am  •»ure  that  there  has 
been  none  in  tiie  (>tern<  r  trails  of 
character,  generosity,  niaidiness,  j)a- 
Iriotism,  integrity  .and  piiT)lic  ^piri!.. 
There  was  another  custom  in  those 
bygone  days  which  t<>  the  present 
generation  seems  cxtrenjely  juiniiti;  e 


13 


and  rude,  but  Which  when  analyzed  j  all  sorts  of  boasts  and  banters.  The 
shows  a  strong  sense  of  honor  and  ,  truth  is  he  had  coine  to  carry  off  the 
manliness  of  eharneter.  To  settle  |  ))ek  for  manhood.  The  very  boys  in 
minor  disputes?  and  differences  \vhet!i-  j  the  street  were  roused  to  hot  blood 
(•)•  for  ima<rinfiry  or  veal  jiersonal  i  in  bt-half  of  what  they  regarded  as 
wrongs  there  were  occasional  fisti-  the  honor  of  their  county  and  state, 
cuffs.  Then  it  sometimes  occurred  One  of  our  first  Board  of  Magistrates, 
in  affairs  of  this*  kind  that  whole  Edward  L.  Poindexler,  was  known  to 
neighbor!)  )ods  and  communities  took 
an  interest.  I  have  known  county 
arravi^d    against    county,    and    state 


be  a  man  of  great   physical    powers. 
Fie  was  a  North    Carolinean    of   the 
old  type,  and  no  doubt,  partly  promjjt- 
against  stale,  for  the  belt  in   cham{>i- j  ed  by   state  pride,    he    made    up    his 


onship,  for  manhood  and  skill  in  a 
hand-to-hand  tussel  between  local 
bullies.  When  these  contests  took 
place,  the  custom  was  for  the  parties 


mind  to  tackle  the  Tennessee  bully. 
The  result  was  that  after  a  long  and 
manly  strtiggle  the  Tennescean  went 
away  next  day  all  bruised    and   sore 


to  go  into  the  ring.  The  ciowd  of  j  with  his  game  feathers  fallen  and 
spectators  demanded  fairness  and  drooping  all  around  him.  This  cus- 
honor.  If  any  one  was  disposed  to  j  tom  illustrates  the  times,  and  I  have 
■s,hQ\s  foul  flay  he  was  withheld  or  in  !  introduced  it  more  for  the  sake  of 
the  attempt  promjitly  chastised  by  I  contrast  than  a  desire  to  parade  it 
some  bystander.  Then  again,  if  ei-' before  the  public, 
ther  party  in  the  tight  resorted  to  any  1  How  marked  the  difference  be- 
weapon  whatever  other  than  his  I  tween  then  and  now.  The  custom 
physical  appendages,  he  was  at  once  ;  now  is  to  tight  with  all  kinds  of  dead- 
hrande<I  and  denounced  as  a  coward,^  Xy  weapons,  knives,  razors,  pistols, 
and  was  avoided  bv  his  former  asso-land  in  fact  with  any  and  every  kind 
ciates.  While  this  custom  was  hru- j  of  weapons  that  corqes  to  hand, 
tal  in  its  practice  there  was  a  bold  !  From  the  mere  stripling  who  js  a 
outcropping  of  character  in  it,  for  I  novice  in  crime  to  the  old  offcnd^M- 
such  affairs  were  ccuiducted  upon  the:  who  has  grown  gray  in  iniquity,  a 
most  punctilious  poiiits  of  Aowor.  i  large  number  of  men  now  carry  pit- 
Remember  this,  young  man,  to  theliols.  In  defense  of  the  habit,  it  is 
day  of  your  death.  I  reniv^mber  thtit  I  usual  to  j)!ead  personal  protection 
on  one  occasion,  1  think  it  was  a  |  and  changed  conditions.  Analysis 
court  week,  a  man  by  ihe  name  of  i  of  the  real  cause  for  this  habit,  to- 
Kean  came  from  Tennessee  to  Frank-  gether  with  a  long  series  of  observa- 
lin.  lie  had  quite  a  reputation  in  tions,  shows  that  it  grows  out  of 
his  state  as  a  locrd  bully.  He  parad-|  about  three  conditions,  viz;  coward- 
ed    up  and  down  the  street   making!  ice,  a  thirst  for  blood,  or  a  cojipcious- 


i ; 


ni'ss  of  guilt  for  ponie  ot'fenot'  and 
consequent  fear  of  arrest  and  puriinh- 
Mipiit  for  it.  The  most  corunion  of 
.\>o>i('  ilirce  sjiccilications  is,  no  doubt, 
«•;•.. ad. ce.  The  young  man,  espe- 
cially, who  stuffs  a  pistol  into  his 
I'ockei  betrays  a  sinister  purpose  not 
to  oI>s(.'rve  the  proprieties  of  a  gentle- 
man, and  not  to  confine  himself  to 
good  company,  and  his  cowardice 
prompts  him  to  arm  himself  with  a 
liftol.  As  a  rule  it  is  the  coward 
.vhi)  first  uses  his  pistol  and  is  almost 
uniformly  first  fo  shoot.  Conscious! 
of  havitiij  violated  the  proprieties  of 
a  genlloman,  or  o^  having  wronged  a 
fellow  being,  with  the  first  intima- 
tion that  he  will  be  required  to  ac- 
count for  it,  and  prom])ted  by  a  cra- 
ven spirit  he  whips  out  his  pistol  and 
commences  shooting.  It  would  per- 
haps bo  a  great  mercy  to  a  certain 
cla«s  of  young  men,  were  they  sent 
to  the  pei:ilentiary  for  the  act  of 
carrying  a  pistol  before  their  coward- 
ly souls  are  stained  ■with  innocent 
blood. 

There  is  anotlier  class  —  a  sort  of 
nondescript  —  vviio     cany      pistols. 
They  can  give  no   valid  reason    why 
they  carry  them  other  than    a   mere 
desire  to  do  so.     This    class  is  most- 
ly  of   small    menial    caliber.     They 
possess  a  strange  sort  of  vanity — are 
'^  -iiled  with  the  idea  that  they    are 
'•iijects  of  both  fear  and  admira- 
"un    an^orig   timid     people,     i     can 
■  K->'{  illustrate   this   senseless   vanity 
ly  relating  an  incident  in  the  life   of 
'U  E;\al  Tennessean,  who    in    the    ol- 


deo  times  used  to  carry  Itoni  loa<l» 
of  Hour,  bacon  and  iron  down  todtmi- 
ter's  Landing  in  Alabama.  lie 
would  anchor  his  boat  and  spend  a 
month  or  two  in  selling  <»ut  his  car- 
go to  the  newly  settled  people.  It 
happened,  that  or)e  night  he  went 
out  to  a  country  frolic.  Being  a  li\e- 
ly  old  buck  he  took  a  full  band  with 
them.  There  wan  ono  girl  i'l  the 
crowd  who  was  a  little  belter  dressed 
than  the  others,  having  a  big  tb>unce 
or  ruffle  around  the  skirt  of  her  dress. 
She  had  not  taken  .'my  part  in  the 
dance.  So  my  fritmd  li.  concluded 
to  bring  her  out.  She  had  a  large 
roasted  potato  in  her  hand  at  the 
lime,  and  stepping  in  front  of  her 
with  a  very  low  and  courle«ufi  bow, 
he  said ;  "Miss,  won't  you  be  so  very 
kind  as  to  lake  a  reel  with  me?"  She 
whirled  about  and  said  :  "Here  mamy, 
bold  my  'later  till  I  dance  with  this 
fellow."  Dashing  into  the  center  of 
the  room  with  arms  swinging  right 
and  left  and  tossing  her  head  into  the 
air  with  a  gyration  of  the  neck,  she 
shouted ;  "Clear  the  way  here  you 
common  sort  and  let  border-tail  come 
out!"  And  my  friend  B.  said  he 
found  the 'most  ample  test  for  his 
powers  for  endurance.  Now,  here 
is  a  portraiture  of  the  young  man  of 
this  class  with  a  pistol  in  his  pocket, 
and  when  I  meet  one  «>f  them  I  al- 
ways think  of  my  old  friend  B.  and 
his  Alabama  girl :  and,  as  for  that 
matte'r  I  find  a  great  many  places 
for  the  application.  Before  dieraiss- 
ing  this  class  let  me  lell  you  a  secret 


15 


upon  them.    The  very  presence  of  a 
pistol  in  the  pocket  of  one   of   them 


the  age.    With  the  pistol  has  come 
an  avalanche — an  inundation  of  rob- 


creates  a  desire  to  use  it.     The  more   bers.     They  bear  the   ear-marks   of 
he  thinks  Jibout  it   the   stronger   the   pistol  paternity.     It   is  the   revolver 


desire  becomes,  until  it  deadens  the 
moral  sensibilities  and  as  a  final  re- 
sult developes  a  new  fledged  enniiiiftl. 


that  arrests  the  railway  train,  goes 
through  the  express  and  mail  cars, 
appropriating  their  contents,   and  ri- 


Yo»in<i'  nian,  if  you  should  ever  have  fles  the  pockets  of  innocent  passen- 
a  lucid  moment  of  reason,  I  beg  of  I  gers  without  regard  to  age,  sex,  or 
you  to  throw  your  pistol  into  the  mill  condition.  It  is  the  chief  reliance  of 
pond  and  b«  a  man  among  men.  I  the  assassin.  It  st«^als  into  the  apart- 
There  is  also  the  blood  thirsty  villian  |  ments  of  decrepitude  and  old    age  at 


who  by  nat'ire  or  habit  is  insensible 
to  all  the  nobler  impulses  of  our 
common   humanity,   and    to    whom 


the  still  hour  of  midnight  and  leaves 
them  stripped  of  their  valuables  and 
occupied  l>y  death.     The  imprints  of 


nothing  is  sweeter  than  human  gore.  |  Colt  and  Wesson  figure  in  most  ca- 
When  he  is  armed  with  a  pistol  he  j  ses  of  suicide.  By  the  way,  the  pis- 
becomes  a  very  scourge  to  society,  ml  age  is  the  age  of  suicides.  Sin- 
He  seeks  every  possible  pretext  to  I  gularly  enough  the  presence  of  the 
satiate  his  corn)orant  appetite  for  j  pistol  begets  in  the  human  mind  all 
blood,  and  that  too  without  regard  manner  of  evil  thoughts  and  intent, 
to  age  or  condition.  And  as  to  the  j  Indeed,  it  seems  to  be  a  fruitful 
old  hardened    criminal    from    wbasc  i  source  of  the  mania  for   self-destruo- 


soui  and  heart  crime  has   obliterated 
all  sympathy  for  the  good    elements 


tion.     Nor   does  it  rogard  age  or  sex. 
Now  cast  up  in  your  mind  the  im- 


it  is  not  so  straiige  that  he   carries  a 
revolver,  because  ho  expects  to  meet 


at  every  turn  either  the   stern    hand  j  the  innocent  and  httlpless   on  its   ac- 
of  jasticfr!  or  retribution    and    conse-    count — the  sad  weeds  of  widowhood 


quently  he  prepares  to  sell  his  life  at 


and  orphanage,  with   which  the  once 


of  human  society  and  deadened  every  ;  mense  dcstrnctioti    of  human    Jife  in 
lie  that  binds  man  to  his  fellow  man  !  which  the   pi:?tol  has   been  the   most 


potent  instrument — the   woe  and  ;.ti- 
guish  that  have   settled   down    upoi 


the  'learest  possible  price.  What  I  happy  domestic  altar  has  been 
think  you  of  the  contrast  between  i  shrouded,  and  the  many  school-house 
yht'.  piist  and  the  present  ?  j  doors  which  have  been  thereby  closed 

I'  is,  dear  reader,  an  open  ques-t  against  helpless  orphans,  .and  tell  m<^ 
tiou  as  to  whether  Colt,  Wesson  and  |  what  this  infant  industry  has  done 
others  with  their  patented  inventions  i  for  the  nation.  It  seetns  to  me  that 
and  manufacture  of  pistols  have  not  |  a  little  prohibition  along  this  line 
been  the  greatest  national  scourge  of  |  might  do  the  nation  some  good. 


,^ 


